content_copy Meet the Makers - Kipato Unbranded – Savannah Willow

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Meet the Makers - Kipato Unbranded

Kipato Unbranded is a social enterprise that collaborates with local artists, promoting their talents and skills and giving them access to markets. Kipato Unbranded is about beauty and unique designs. They create jewellery that is inspired by everyday people and for everyday people. The pieces are made from local materials that include brass, bone and beads.

The name Kipato Unbranded conveys their mission to empower local artists, who receive fair wages for the jewellery they create.

Why Kipato Unbranded?


Why unbranded? Because it is not for the brand itself but for the people who create it. We believe that beautiful jewellery should not be out of reach for everyday people and therefore are striving to create an enterprise that is accessible and approachable.

​Our brand is adaptable, simple, and ethically responsible- the collections are designed to be versatile, suitable as much for a high profile journalism awards event as for a casual Saturday afternoon with friends.

​​​Our products are created from recycled materials, and our packaging and operations are eco-friendly, making it an environmentally responsible enterprise.



​In Kibera, Ojiko does the same.

This same scenario plays out, over and over, as many jewellery makers in lower income Nairobi neighbourhoods painstakingly create beauty with their hands, some as independent contractors, others in group workshops run by luxury jewellery brands.

Being an independent jewellery maker in a lower income neighborhood in Nairobi is not easy. Artists depend on employers to give them access to larger markets. And while the jewellery industry in Kenya thrives on the labour of artists like Ojiko and Elijah, their salary is dependent on the whims of their employer, and often is only a very small proportion of the profits their work would generate. On the flip side, their jewellery pieces are mostly aimed at high end luxury stores, selling at prices that are normal for the target market but which are exorbitantly out of reach for the majority of everyday people.

And so, Kipato Unbranded was born.

 The Artists


Sometimes in his sleep, Ojiko dreams of jewellery designs. In the morning when he wakes up, he translates these dreams into pieces of jewellery. Other times, when watching an Indian or a Nigerian movie, he will be drawn by an element of what he is watching, inspiration that he then incorporates into his work.

Ojiko hails from Migori County in Nyanza Province. Like many others, he came to Nairobi to find work, starting to create jewellery in 2005. A year later, he transitioned to working using brass.

​Today, as he lives and works alone in Kibera, he uses his income to support his wife who is currently in university in Kisumu. He loves the challenges of jewellery-making because it enables him to make enough to support himself and his wife. But beyond that, he is driven by the passion that he has for his work.




In a different life, Elijah might have stayed in his home village, working as a digger or a motorcycle driver.

In this one, however, he made the move to Nairobi in hopes of better supporting his family - 1 brother and 3 sisters, and fell upon jewellery making by chance. Today, Elijah has grown to love the work as a way to exercise his creative muscles while making an income.

To him, the best part of this work is designing the jewellery and creating beauty with his hands: "The most beautiful part of my work [is that] I enjoy everything that I make… especially the earrings and bangles."


With the income from his jewellery, Elijah supports his family, ensuring that his young brothers and sisters have the chance to go to school.